AIBC Asia 2025: sports data and esports unplugged

On June 3, the AIBC stage at SMX Manila buzzed with genuine insight and lively debate as part of the ongoing AIBC Asia 2025, with two sessions drawing the audience into the heart of Asia’s sports and esports transformation. First, Oscar Brodkin (Sportradar) and Jared “The Daredevil” Dillinger (Let It Fly Entertainment) sat down for a fireside chat that went beyond the usual talking points, exploring the power and pitfalls of sports data, athlete identity, and the evolving media landscape. Minutes later, a panel of esports and sports tech leaders unpacked the business and culture of emerging technology in sports and gaming. Both sessions kept the focus on the human stories, frictions, and future opportunities shaping this fast-moving sector.

Behind the sport numbers

Oscar Brodkin, Managing Director APAC at Sportradar, and Jared Dillinger, retired pro athlete and media entrepreneur, took the audience on a candid journey through the sports data universe. Brodkin explained, “We’re the biggest sports data company for bookmakers, media, all over the world. We basically create, package, redistribute sports data all over the world”. Dillinger, drawing on his athlete’s perspective, pushed the conversation beyond numbers: “There’s data and then there are athletes; instincts, emotions, drive… I don’t know if that really relates to data, but my question is, do you see data overpowering or overwhelming athletes at this point?”

5 real lessons from the fireside chat:

• Sports data is woven into every layer of the game, often more than fans or athletes realise. Brodkin noted that even factors like travel fatigue are baked into analytics: “If he travelled 12 hours, he’s going to be tired, he’s not going to perform at his best level. We adjust his supremacy by one or two points”. 
• Instinct and “clutch” moments still matter. Brodkin reflected, “Clutch is always gonna mean something, and the interesting part is when the data shows that someone is clutch. Can you predict it more and more?” 
• Data ownership and monetisation are evolving. While companies like Sportradar work with leagues, the question of individual athletes owning and profiting from their data remains a conversation between players and leagues. 
• Integrity remains a challenge. Brodkin revealed, “We’re monitoring 800,000 matches a year… somewhere between 0.5 and 1% of those games could be fixed”. The fight for clean sport is ongoing. 
• Asia’s diversity is both a challenge and an opportunity, with Brodkin highlighting the need for “appropriate staff to take advantage of it” across so many languages and cultures.

Behind the sports tech

Moderated by Dr Jane Thomason, the panel brought together Joebert Yu (PESO), Tryke Gutierrez (Tier One Entertainment), Kirill Nekrasov (BETBY), and Leo Andrew “Jab” Escutin (Sibol National Esports Team) for a conversation that was lively, practical, and rooted in lived experience.

Joebert Yu spoke to the power of access: “The biggest thing about the opportunity is the access… mobile gives everybody an easier access for gaming”. Tryke Gutierrez focused on storytelling and community, explaining, “At the end of the day, it’s always about storytelling… you also have to adjust to the natural content format that people are consuming nowadays”.

6 fresh realities from the sports tech panel:

• AI and data analytics are transforming everything from player scouting to betting tips, making the industry smarter and more responsive. 
• Short-form content and new social platforms are reshaping fan engagement, now, “the introduction is out of the window, you go straight to the body and to the end,” as Gutierrez described. 
• Community and national pride are powerful engines for fan loyalty, especially in the Philippines, where, as Escutin shared, “just slapping the Philippine team on our team name automatically gives us support”. 
• NFTs and digital ownership are on the horizon, but education and optics matter; the panel agreed that digital property rights will play a growing role once perceptions shift. 
• Esports is now mainstream, with opportunities for Filipino talent both at home and abroad, but access to capital and publisher support remain hurdles. 
• The future is hybrid: the lines between sports and esports, digital and physical, are blurring fast.

The real future of sports tech

Both talks made it clear: technology is only as powerful as the stories and communities it enables. Data, AI, and digital platforms are rewriting the rules, but the winners will be those who keep the human drama, the clutch moments, and the fan connection at the centre.

The fireside chat and panel didn’t just inform, they challenged and inspired. AIBC Asia 2025 is only just beginning. Stay tuned to AIBC News for exclusive coverage, real time insights, and tomorrow’s panels and keynotes shaping the future of tech.